Packers Morning Buzz: Troubling lack of OLB depth

Michael Cohen and Aaron Nagler discuss the Packers bringing in former 49ers linebacker Ahmad Brooks for a visit and what it says about the state of their outside linebacker group.
Aaron Nagler/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin

Green Bay Packers outside linebacker Nick Perry (53) talks with the trainers after he was injured during the game against the Denver Broncos on Saturday, August 26, 2017, at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.(Photo: Jim Matthews/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wis)

Welcome to your game day Morning Buzz, rounding up news and views regarding the Green Bay Packers from around the web and here at PackersNews.com. Grab a cup of coffee (or brew some tea, if that’s your thing) and get caught up on everything you need to know about the Packers.

Think about what would happen if left tackle David Bakhtiari had to miss some time. Two years ago we saw how that gummed up their offense when he missed three games because of a sprained ankle. It took until the third week (a playoff game at Washington) for the Packers to discover that JC Tretter could at least get them by.

This is a good time to note what a luxury the Packers had in Tretter the last three years. He was a starting-caliber center, and indeed started 10 games without the offense missing a thing. But in a pinch he could play guard or left tackle, too. They had to let him walk in free agency — you can’t pay a backup offensive lineman $5.58 million a year — but that’s the kind of line depth only good drafting gets you.

And that’s exactly why general manager Ted Thompson traded up in the second round to draft Spriggs two years ago. But Spriggs clearly isn’t the guy the Packers should turn to first. They’d have to help him so often with extra blockers, their offense wouldn’t be the same. That’s a hard way to play.